Resilient Retail
86 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 45 ratingsRetail business owners have resilience in their DNA. From real stories of struggle and breakthrough to the insights your retail business needs right now, find inspiration, take action, and make your business future-proof.
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Episodes
The new weird: Navigating the next era of commerce with Kristen LaFrance
July 01, 2021 09:00 - 26 minutes - 24 MB🥳 SEASON FINALE! Today is our final, regular programming for Season 2 of Resilient Retail. Today, our host Kristen LaFrance is walkig us through the three pillars of community-led retail, aka- the next era of successful commerce. Tune in to hear her thoughts, emotions, and heartfelt response to this season. But don't worry- we'll be back with a wrap up episode soon. Cheers!
Real Life Retail: Jeremy + Julie Brown of Province of Canada
June 30, 2021 09:00 - 53 minutes - 49.2 MBToday Steph Laposta is joined by Jeremy + Julie Brown of Province of Canada for the last episode of Real Life Retail, a weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. To finish the season off they talk about the creation of Province of Canada, the patience it takes to build a business, their thoughts on having a physical retail store versus online, and their dreams for the future of Province of Canada!
On top since 1938: How REI builds a peak customer experience from beginning to end
June 29, 2021 09:00 - 35 minutes - 32.7 MBREI needs no introduction. They’ve been a juggernaut in the outdoor retail industry for decades, and most of us already know that their customer experience is absolutely unmatched. In this episode, Chief Experience Officer Curtis Kopf digs into the ways that REI builds community, adventure, and sustainability into every touchpoint. That means amazing experiences in their physical stores, online, and everywhere in-between. Check out REI and follow them on Twitter Connect with Curti...
Resilient News: Leading through Change with Kat Cole
June 25, 2021 09:00 - 30 minutes - 27.9 MBThis Friday, Kristen is joined with Kat Cole to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. Sadly we have reached the finale of Resilient News! To finish the season off we chat about leading through change, having empathy as a business owner, and staying on track with the mission.
No brand, no problem: How Italic cuts out the middle(men) for a radical new approach to commerce
June 24, 2021 09:00 - 45 minutes - 41.8 MBSo much of Resilient Retail this season has been about the importance of brand. But what happens when you take brand out of the equation? Well, you get Italic. They’re rethinking the basics of commerce by connecting top-tier manufacturers directly to customers at the lowest possible markup. It’s a more radical move than you might think. This episode is all about a fundamentally different approach to growth based on a simplified supply chain and a membership model. Check out Italic ...
How Venus ET Fleur is setting the gold standard for the floral industry
June 22, 2021 11:00 - 41 minutes - 38.4 MBVenus ET Fleur is a husband-and-wife-led luxury brand disrupting the flower industry - not least by offering roses that last a full year with minimal upkeep. That alone would set them apart. But they’ve also nailed an exciting, innovative approach to meeting their customer’s needs, no matter how they enter the funnel. Maintaining pitch-perfect operations is important for a brand like VEF. After all, they’re dealing with living, breathing products that need special care to arrive on ...
Where DTC meets retail: brushing up on Quip’s omnichannel strategy
June 17, 2021 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23.8 MBDTC subscription and in-store retail often feel like they’re coming from opposite ends of the shopping spectrum. So what happens when you combine the two? Shane Pittson, VP of Growth at Quip, is all about creating a shopping experience that helps customers build healthy oral care habits in the most convenient ways possible. This episode digs into the relationship between retail and subscription, Shane’s innovative rewards program, and how Quip has hit an 80% response rate on their p...
Real Life Retail: Special PRIDE edition featuring Queeriosity folks Eli Holtz and Kai Joseph
June 16, 2021 09:00 - 32 minutes - 29.3 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. Today we have a special episode in celebration of PRIDE month! Joined by Queeriosity folks Eli Holtz and Kai Joseph, to chat about starting Queeriosity, the struggles of going through the production process, getting their product sold in retail stores, and we even get a little taste of the game, Queeriosity: The LGBTQ+ Social Game!
How Neighborhood Goods crafts department store experiences for the 21st century
June 15, 2021 09:00 - 45 minutes - 42 MBMost entrepreneurs would have balked at the decision to launch Neighborhood Goods in late 2018. After all, many department stores were barely surviving by the end of the 2010s, and the department store retail model appeared to be on the verge of collapse. But against all odds, co-founder and CEO Matt Alexander has leveraged amazing growth in changing economic times. So what sets Neighborhood Goods apart? It all comes down to a creative rethinking of the in-store experience. They st...
Shopify News! Shop Local with Arpan Podduturi
June 11, 2021 11:00 - 17 minutes - 16 MB🚨BREAKING NEWS: Arpan Podduturi, Director of Retail Product here at Shopify joins the show for a surprise announcement of a new Shop App feature that will have a massive impact on local retailers. You don't wanna miss this episode.
How The Goody Vault turns vintage finds into timeless stories
June 10, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 31.3 MBEmanuel Edwards took a big risk when he transitioned to managing his curated vintage brand The Goody Vault full-time in early 2021. Thanks to the fact that he’d already been building relationships via his one-on-one showroom experience for a couple years, he was ready to hit the ground running when the Vault moved from side hustle to main attraction. Emanuel’s success is rooted in his understanding that fundamentally, people buy from people. He crafts every in-store experience for m...
Real Life Retail: Jenna Lam from Early Bird & Worm and Nest + Hatch
June 09, 2021 09:00 - 30 minutes - 27.8 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Jenna Lam, from Early Bird & Worm and Nest & Hatch, joins us to chat about starting a private label, the challenges of not being able to plan, and the rollercoaster of owning a business.
Styling for the stars: How Jennifer Fisher Jewelry forged an omnichannel brand
June 08, 2021 09:00 - 29 minutes - 27.1 MBJennifer Fisher has styled for clients from Miley Cyrus to Rihanna, but her jewelry brand’s major break came in 2006, when Uma Thurman wore one of Jennifer’s custom necklaces on the cover of Glamour magazine. Since then, Jennifer Fisher Jewelry has exploded. Her creations have appeared in Vogue, Variety, People, Elle, and more. She’s expanded into a culinary line and the brand has recently opened retail locations in New York and Beverly Hills. Jennifer’s spent the past fifteen year...
Resilient News: Halie's Season Finale. Prime Days, Etsy's new acquisition, and the woes of Bed Bath and Beyond
June 04, 2021 09:00 - 39 minutes - 36.7 MBJoin Kristen and Halie LeSavage to cover the hottest industry news and trends of this week. Sadly it's the last episode with Halie around but we’re here to chat about Amazon Prime Day and back to school shopping, Etsy’s acquisition of Depop, the power of physical retail, and Bed Bath and Beyond’s new changes.
Dough is Your Canvas: Creating the Future of Pizza with Ali Khan Lalani
June 03, 2021 09:00 - 39 minutes - 35.9 MBA pizzeria isn’t generally what comes to mind when we think of retail, but General Assembly Pizza (also known as GA Pizza) isn’t exactly playing by the rules. Since 2017, they’ve been rewriting the playbook for fast casual. Founder and CEO Ali Khan Lalani has built the brand around truly seamless customer experiences. That means focusing on the connections between technology and the range of mediums customers use to interact with the brand- online, dine-in, and everywhere in-betwee...
Real Life Retail: Jeff St. Pierre, Retail Launch Engineer at Shopify
June 02, 2021 09:00 - 38 minutes - 35.5 MBThis week on Real Life Retail, Steph LaPosta is joined by Jeff St. Pierre, Retail Launch Engineer at Shopify, for an honest, candid conversation about what he’s learned in his own successes of working in retail, how to create a brand vision, and creating smart partnerships.
How Brik + Clik is using cutting-edge technology to test the boundaries of retail
June 01, 2021 09:00 - 50 minutes - 46.2 MBThis episode of Resilient Retail is a little different. Brik + Clik has spent the last eight months testing out a range of much-hyped technologies in their California location. Co-founder Hemant Chavan is here to tell Kristen what worked, what didn’t, and what to expect from the next decade in retail. So here’s the name of the game: Kris quizzes Hemant on a range of technologies, and he talks us through what’s here to stay. This episode is loaded with actionable insights from one o...
Resilient News: Let's go glamping. How the hospitality industry is shifting with Kat Cole
May 28, 2021 09:00 - 16 minutes - 14.9 MBThis Friday, Kristen is joined with Kat Cole to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week we’re talking all things travel! As travel restrictions are lifting we’re seeing a trend in hospitality, immersive experiences, and the opportunities in the hospitality market.
Diamond in the rough: How Hill House Home went from personal vision to viral sensation
May 27, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 31.9 MBHill House Home has exploded over the past couple of years, especially in the wake of a truly viral product known as the "Nap Dress.” Through it all, founder and CEO Nell Diamond has balanced customer demand and her own personal vision to craft a brand that’s both responsive to its customers and true to its founding aesthetic. So how did Hill House grow from a Yale University incubator into a brand with a truly fanatic fan base? It comes down to Nell’s deeply humanistic approach to...
Real Life Retail: Tim Guram, Founder of 100 Years of Love
May 26, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 31.8 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Tim Guram, Founder of 100 Years of Love joins the show to talk about the passion behind 100 Years of Love, the thought process behind a rebrand, and why the approach of being open and honest is important.
Meet Goorin Bros: The 126-year-old business that’s gotten an operational facelift
May 25, 2021 09:00 - 56 minutes - 51.4 MBWhat’s the central nervous system of your business? For Goorin Bros controller, Aaron Wyse, it’s the logistical tools that underpin your operations. That means looking at the interplay between technology and human labor to build workflows that hold up under pressure. Goorin Bros has pivoted to new forms of omnichannel shopping over the past couple years, which opens up a ton of challenges and opportunities. Aaron digs deep into the questions brands should be asking as they scale an...
Resilient News: QVC who? Macy's category expansion, Facebook's push into livestream shopping, and Knix's new round of funding with Halie LeSavage
May 21, 2021 09:00 - 31 minutes - 29.2 MBArticles discussed: Facebook's new live-streaming program [Tech Crunch] Macy's expanding into new categories [CNBC] Toronto E-commerce company Knix Wear raises $53-million after CEO nixes involvement of any investor who questioned her pregnancy [The Globe and Mail]
How SuitShop’s tailored customer experience led to a perfect product-market fit
May 20, 2021 09:00 - 44 minutes - 40.4 MBSuitShop might come from humble beginnings, but you’d never know that looking at them today. The men’s formalwear brand is an incredible example of a digitally native brand that’s grown by prioritizing the customer every step of the way. That started with crafting a great online shopping experience, but it has also meant a surprise pivot to retail and groundbreaking new approaches to omnichannel selling. SuitShop’s success comes from a willingness to shift, bend, and change based on...
How Suit Shop’s tailored customer experience led to a perfect product-market fit
May 20, 2021 09:00 - 44 minutes - 40.4 MBSuitShop might come from humble beginnings, but you’d never know that looking at them today. The men’s formalwear brand is an incredible example of a digitally native brand that’s grown by prioritizing the customer every step of the way. That started with crafting a great online shopping experience, but it has also meant a surprise pivot to retail and groundbreaking new approaches to omnichannel selling. SuitShop’s success comes from a willingness to shift, bend, and change based on ...
Real Life Retail: Bo Hong from Lou-Lou's Flower Truck
May 19, 2021 09:00 - 29 minutes - 27.1 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Bo Hong from Lou-Lou's Flower Truck talks mobile retail and pop ups, the importance of social media, and pivoting the floral industry in the midst of COVID.
How Loeffler Randall stays true to its initial mission after sixteen years in business
May 18, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 31.7 MBIf there’s a theme in the past decade of retail, it’s been the shift online. For most of us, that begs a tough question: how do we stay personal and human-focused when our interactions with customers are mediated through technology? For Loeffler Randall, a family owned and operated fashion brand sold in over 300 retailers worldwide, maintaining genuine relationships means understanding yourself first. Founder and Chief Creative Officer Jessie Randall has built an amazing brand by s...
Resilient News: Who let the teens out? Back to school rush, Chipotle's push for workers, and apocalyptic beer with Kristen LaFrance
May 14, 2021 14:48 - 24 minutes - 22.6 MBThis week on Resilient news, Kristen is on her own! We'll walk through the impacts of new vaccination rollout, the back to school rush, Chipotle's push to hire 20,000 new workers, and a bold move by New Belgium Brewery.
Good energy: eevee’s retail space is all about building rewarding community relationships
May 13, 2021 09:00 - 43 minutes - 39.8 MBeevee’s is a PEV (personal electric vehicle) company rethinking the ways that we move, selling everything from electric unicycles to onewheels and eSkateboards. Co-founders Bradley Spence & Lukas Tanasiuk are building a brand that straddles the online and retail spaces and they’ve used their focus on community and education to survive and even thrive after launching during a pandemic. This episode digs into the ways they’ve harnessed free in-store lessons to build trust and communi...
Real Life Retail: Pam + Frank from North Standard Trading Post
May 12, 2021 09:00 - 39 minutes - 36.5 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Pam and Frank from North Standard Trading Post share their journey from being retailers to becoming wholesalers, how a reselling business turned to a full on brand and how they're rethinking their business for the future.
Reinventing the store associate with HERO’s Adam Levene
May 11, 2021 09:00 - 57 minutes - 52.8 MBRetail is supposed to consist of humans helping one another to find products that improve our lives. During the pandemic, that was challenged. One of the companies helping to bridge the gap was HERO, which strives to bring together the best of the retail world and the digital world. HERO has helped companies like Nike and Liberty London to keep retail associates employed by breaking down traditional retail silos. Founder and repeat Resilient Retail guest Adam Levene describes how HE...
Resilient News: Zara enters beauty, Mother's Day emails, and the return of summer purchasing with Halie LeSavage
May 07, 2021 09:00 - 40 minutes - 37.1 MBEvery Friday, join Kristen and a co-host to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week, Halie LeSavage, writer of Retail Brew is back to chat about Zara's beauty launch and their sustainability, brands allowing consumers to opt out of holiday emails, and consumer behaviors going into the summer.
Cooking up community: An Ethiopian restaurant embraces innovation while honoring a decades-old past
May 06, 2021 09:00 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MBFounded in 1988, Rosalind’s Ethiopian Restaurant is practically a landmark. In fact, it helped inspire the formal creation of LA’s Little Ethiopia. Pre-pandemic, Rosalind’s had served as a communal hub thanks to Meklit’s personable and well-connected father. But COVID put them into a tailspin, with a daunting menu and food that didn’t easily lend itself to takeout. Meklit, an art director who had experience working with startups, decided to experiment with the menu. Working with h...
Real Life Retail: Leah Eyles of Scout
May 05, 2021 09:00 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Leah Eyles of Scout shares her ideas behind creating Scout, the launch of a second location, how she transitioned to online shopping due to COVID, all the hardships of having a small business in the midst of a global pandemic, and she finds strength in all the challenges.
It takes a village: The Atlanta-based market that’s enabling a new generation of Black power
May 04, 2021 09:00 - 57 minutes - 52.9 MBWhen Dr. Lakeysha Hallmon founded The Village Market ATL in 2016, she was a former educator who felt inspired to help local Black entrepreneurs make their mark on the world. What started as a support system to facilitate businesses in her home base of Atlanta to connect with customers soon turned into something bigger. Today, the organization has helped funnel over $5.3 million dollars to Black-owned businesses across the nation and beyond. During the pandemic, the organization even...
Resilient News: Food on a Mission with Kat Cole
April 30, 2021 09:00 - 44 minutes - 40.8 MBEvery Friday, join Kristen and a co-host to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. Kat Cole is back this week to talk about all things food, from the evolution of food brands, food retailers missions, the healthiest leading brands, and all their favorites!
From culture shock to cutting-edge: How Raw Apothecary is spicing up Mexican DTC
April 29, 2021 09:00 - 43 minutes - 39.8 MBMexico is the birthplace of many wonderful things, but eCommerce isn’t one of them. In a country where online purchases are a source of distrust and skepticism, Macarena Riva and Andrea Sanchez are turning the tide. The two best friends started Raw Apothecary, a natural beauty brand that speaks to women of all ages with minimalist packaging and clean ingredients. But it wasn’t a fancy website that sealed their first sales. Instead it was the personal attention of the brands two pas...
Real Life Retail: Ashley from Honey's Ice Cream + Tyger Tyger
April 28, 2021 09:00 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Ashley Wittig of Honey’s Ice Cream and Tyger Tyger, shares her experience creating delicious, plant-based ice cream for Honey’s Ice Cream and her passion project, Tyger Tyger promoting great, plant-based, holistic options for everyone.
Igloo has built brand loyalty that spans generations. Now, they’re cooler than ever.
April 27, 2021 14:12 - 59 minutes - 54.6 MBTrendy new brands are certainly exciting. But some brands have been around for decades, and they give us a distinctive fuzzy feeling inside. Igloo coolers is one of those brands. Founded in the 1940’s, Igloo may give us that warm nostalgic glow - but they’re all about keeping things cool. Brian Garofalow is the Chief Marketing Officer at Igloo. An experienced ecommerce marketer, Brian’s focus with Igloo is less about building brand awareness (about 90% of households already know the...
Resilient News: Pause and Reflect. Amazon's venture into salons, embracing entrepreneurs, and size inclusivity with Halie LeSavage
April 23, 2021 09:00 - 47 minutes - 43.3 MBEvery Friday, join Kristen and a co-host to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week, Kristen takes a few minutes to reflect on the last year of the world's most important news, and Halie LeSavage is back to talk Amazon’s first hair salon opening in the UK, the passion behind retail workers and the future, and the new expansion of comfort and inclusivity in women's intimates.
Three brands at a time: Shane Vitaly Foran on marketing to consumer archetypes
April 22, 2021 11:00 - 36 minutes - 33.5 MBWhat do you get when a rock and roll backpacker and pilot-slash-poker-player start a jewelry business? The results are out-of-this-world unique. Shane Vitaly Foran is the founder and CEO of Compound Studio, a company that has dreamed up three incredible brands. With their focus on jewelry and accessories that cater to specific consumer archetypes, Shane and team have successfully spun up brands in different universes. Bootstrapped from day one, the company took their flagship line ...
Real Life Retail: Bryce Taylor-Vaisey from Penny Candy Jam and AM Bagel
April 21, 2021 11:00 - 45 minutes - 41.4 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Bryce Taylor-Vaisey, from Penny Candy Jam and AM Bagel, talks about the creation of his businesses, his experiences with selling at flea markets, and how he stays focused on the business dream.
How Allbirds is redefining sustainable DTC by thinking global and acting local
April 20, 2021 09:00 - 42 minutes - 39.4 MBAllbirds was one of DTC’s first pioneers when they built their successful sustainable sneaker brand. Driven by an ethos of transparent sustainability, every pair of Allbirds shoes is made with earth-friendly materials like merino wool and eucalyptus fiber. Travis Boyce is Head of Global Retail Operations at Allbirds and handles all things brick and mortar for the brand. He explained why Allbirds decided to pursue a global retail strategy - and why they view their current efforts as simply ano...
Retail in the World: How store owners in the UK and Ireland are fighting for survival in 2021
April 19, 2021 09:00 - 32 minutes - 29.7 MBOn today's BONUS episode, Kristen takes us on a tour across the UK and Ireland retail. You'll hear from four retailers and experts based in the UK and Ireland as they tell us the stories of their last 12 months and their plans for reopening.
Resilient News: The future of Cannabis commerce with Kat Cole
April 16, 2021 11:00 - 47 minutes - 43.6 MBEvery Friday, join us as we cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week, Kristen and Kat Cole talk about all things cannabis industry, dispensaries and their retail methods, their favorite brands, and Kat shares her theory of how CBD will blow up in the years to come!
From Beige to Brilliant: How Sustainable Retailer Goldune is Making Sustainability Approachable to All
April 15, 2021 09:00 - 1 hour - 61.5 MBSustainability starts with good habits, and good habits can start with great role models. This episode of Resilient Retail focuses on Azora Zoe Paknad, founder of ecommerce retail brand Goldune. Goldune is all about injecting excitement into the realm of sustainable and zero waste shopping. For Azora, this meant elevating sustainability out of the realm of hippie handbags or wealthy housewives and transforming it into something both approachable and chic. By curating a carefully vetted collec...
Real Life Retail: Richard Nair from Nishe
April 14, 2021 11:00 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Richard Nair of Nishe shares his story of launching Nishe, the loyalty and emotional aspect of connecting to stores, and how creating monthly idea sounding boards helps further the business.
Kettle & Fire on using innovative feedback loops to ignite consumer interest both in-store and online
April 13, 2021 09:00 - 42 minutes - 38.9 MBWhen Jack Meredith became the first employee at Kettle & Fire, the company had zero revenue and next to no retail know-how. Today, their healthy bone broth products are sold online, in stores like Whole Foods, via subscription, and more. Kettle & Fire’s technique lies in proactively listening to customers and taking a uniquely hands-on approach to growth. In this episode of Resilient Retail, Jack described how Kettle & Fire took on the wholesale market by mailing letters to local nutritionist...
Resilient News: Is brunch culture dead? Experiential retail, teen spending, and rental commerce with Halie LeSavage
April 09, 2021 11:00 - 45 minutes - 41.8 MBEvery Friday, join Kristen and a co-host to cover the hottest industry news and trends of the week. This week, Halie LeSavage, writer of Retail Brew is here to chat about Dick’s Sporting Goods’ new experiential flagship concept, a major acquisition in the jewelry world, results from a new teen spending survey, and lastly our hosts wonder whether the pandemic has made brunch culture a thing of the past.
Althea Johnson on beautiful results that are more than skin deep
April 08, 2021 11:00 - 27 minutes - 24.8 MBWhen Althea Johnson opened Korean beauty shop Propr Life + Style a mere week before the pandemic, she was soon surrounded by shuttered stores on all sides. But the creative and resourceful retailer refused to be one of them. Instead, she anchored herself in growing her business through an innovative combination of home delivery, social media, and email marketing. By listening to her customers’ changing needs and remaining available through thick and thin, Althea earned the loyalty of a custom...
Real Life Retail: Brenda Ngina Kahura of Parkdale Pet Foods
April 07, 2021 11:00 - 42 minutes - 38.9 MBJoin Steph LaPosta each week for Real Life Retail. A weekly segment with honest, candid conversations with retailers. In this episode, Brenda Ngina Kahura of Parkdale Pet Foods shares her experience starting a business in the midst of COVID, navigating health regulations, the booming pet industry, oh yeah, and all the regular growing pains and celebrations of starting a small business.